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The world was glitching out.
That is what you noticed as you woke up.
Last night, Emma and Kanade had deposited you on the bed, and Shinji ran for the bathroom. He came back with a damp washcloth that he pressed into your hands. On his instruction, you obediently lifted it and sponged at your sore, cracked face. Your tears had dried up by then; you just felt tired.
A good night sleep had cured all that.
As you stepped outside, you noticed .
Your friends’ appearances had changed drastically.
They looked older. Most were in Hope’s Peak Uniforms, but Kanade… she wore a long trenchcoat over a white button up and black skirt, and pink tie. Her hair was down. She was also… a bit chubby.
“I woke up this morning, and most of my clothes don’t fit me anymore.” She said.
“What’s happened to us?” Kokoro was the only one, aside from you, psychically unaltered.
Monocrow then reappeared.
”Ding dong! We’ll have an graduation exam to find out! First, an investigation! Gather some mysteries to solve! You've all probably figured this out by now, but at this point, the killing game has now entered 'True Ending' mode. So in the name of fairness, I will unlock the ruins on the second island! Look wherever you want! Solve the mystery of Utsuroshima in whatever way you see fit! Then we can all meet up at the exam, okay?"
“Emma, will you investigate with me?” You asked.
”Of course!” She says.
“Everyone, split up!” Emma said.
Everyoen then left one by one, save for you and Emma.
It was time for the graduation exam’s investigation.
He and Emma start by going in the ruins on the Second Island. It's a virtual recreation of Hope's Peak. Teruya begins by climbing the stairs leading to a large tower in the center of the island. He sees a large golden door and decides to unlock it and enter. He finds various mangas.
One manga is called "The Tragedy". He finds the contents… rather disturbing, but decides to add it as a mystery for the exam. Teruya and Emma then move on to the morgue, aka the bio lab. He finds a vial of a clear liquid. The vial says it's "the secret to success in your mission, Teruya".
Teruya decides to add it to his growing collection of mysteries. The school gets more glitched as Teruya explores. Eventually, the second floor hallway is upside down. He uses the staircase on the left. Thankfully, the third floor is not upside down.
Teruya then finds an elevator. It's a regular one, not one of the fancy ones that transports people to different floors without opening the door. He enters it. He finds a computer lab. A computer is there.
He finds an email, from someone called "Nanako Y.", with a few strange letters in kana, I think they're kanji, and a weird symbol. He clicks on it. A pop-up window appears. It says "Be cautious. Your mission is compromised." He reads further:
"Let me elaborate further, Teruya. The Children of Uehara is made up of 4 very dangerous people. The members consist of my brother Nikei as their leader, Hajime Makunouchi, Syobai Hashimoto, and Yuki Maeda. Watch out for them. They're onto you, Teruya…" He reads more:
"You're being monitored. Be careful. We're watching you, Teruya. We know you're coming to the graduation exam. You're being investigated further. Keep your grades up." Teruya then closed the window.
"If Void was once the Children of Uehara… is Void onto me?" Teruya thinks. It's a horrible thought. He adds that onto his mysteries.
He finds more and more mysteries. Eventually, he finds a massive library. He thinks he can read all the books in it. But it's all in Japanese. One book is in English, though.
"Subjects"
Most of it is blurry, but he can make out some parts.
"Subject 07: Setsuka Chiebukuro
World famous psychologist. Very stoic yet cheerful." Along with a picture of the girl.
She wears a lab coat over a black suit, and her blue hair partially covers her eyes, a lone streak of white in her bangs.
"Chiebukuro, we meet again. I'm glad you're doing your part for the country, though I wish you'd do it a little bit earlier. Said a journalist. ‘And now you've been chosen for the NWP Project. You will see things no one else can see. You will go where no one else can go.'' was the rest of what Teruya could read.
The rest of the readable article goes on to say that she's a "famed psychiatrist, a researcher of various psychiatric conditions, and a teacher at a prestigious university." Teruya puts it down.
He decides to add the file as another mystery.
Eventually, Teruya heads to another computer.
It's another email.
"Hi, Teruya. What about I let you on a secret?"
"Yeah? How secret?"
"Very." "Tell me!" Teruya says.
The email continues:
"In a worse-case scenario where the AI teacher goes insane, we prepared a hidden command to use at the graduation exam site. It's… the forced shutdown sequence!"
"F-Forced shutdown sequence?" Hope rose in Teruya's chest.
The email confirmed his suspicions.
"Even a teacher's authority can't stop that command. It's a way to end this that you guys can choose on your own, independently of the AI. Even if they stole the teacher's role, they shouldn't be able to stop it. If you use it… you guys will win. However, to use it, you need more than half the number of people." The email ends there.
Teruya decides to add this to his many mysteries.
He finds some files to add to his growing list.
Then, he gets an email from someone called "Kanata Inori". It's a rather polite message. It simply says "Good luck stopping Void, Teruya." Ding bong!
"Ah, so, um… I'm getting tired of waiting. Shall we just plunge right in? It's time for the long-awaited graduation exam! Please enter the red door over there. Until then, see you soon! Love, Monocrow!"
A red door appears.
Teruya sighs and steps into it…
You ran through a dark corridor. Eventually, you made your ways to the trial room.
You barely noticed the industrial makeover Monocrow had given the room, with its unadorned grey concrete walls contrasting against the scarlet curtains, azure panels and gold trim. The podiums this time were white and green.
Hajime’s portrait now stood there, his face crossed out with a sloppy pink X.
So, this is it... we may be finally allowed to leave this island, but he wants us to seriously consider whether we want to or not... But why...? What does he have planned for us now...?!
We were all backed into a corner, now. Monocrow and Kokoro both had made that very clear. It was finally time to make our final choice in the killing game... would it be the right choice? Or... the dreadfully wrong one...?
What do we even have to discuss...? What do we even have to help us decide...?!
"Now, then! Let's begin the Graduation Exam!" Monocrow roared gleefully, plonking down on his throne.
Class Trial! All Rise!
"Now, to start." Monocrow said. "What is the true identity of this world?"
As the class groans and raises their hands, Teruya speaks, "I think... we already know."
"Nah, I mean the world itself." Monocrow clarified.
What is the identity out of this world, then?
"Oh, I know!" Teruya exclaimed after a few minutes. "It's virtual."
"Virtual?" Otori asked, raising an eyebrow. "How can a world be virtual?"
"If I said that this world was just a simulation of another, would you believe me?" Monocrow said. "Anyways, this island is a VR simulation based off the real Utsuroshima!" "We went through a game?" Teruya asked.
"If this is a game… does that mean my dialogue is being displayed in these text windows?" "Yes!" Monocrow said. "If you say something in the game, your dialogue will show up here!"
"I hope this isn't one of those time wasting games where you die a lot..." Kanade sighed.
"I wouldn't know anything about that," Teruya said. "I haven't played many games in my life."
"If it's a game, why does it feel so real?" Shinji asked.
"Is it a case of Your Mind Makes It Real?" Kokoro asked. "What's that?" Teruya asked.
"When you believe it's real, you start to feel it's real, too!" Kokoro said. "You wouldn't know anything about that, though. I'm not very good with explaining complex theories."
"So this is a real place then?" Teruya asked. "Kinda." Monocrow said. "Well, yeah."
"Alright, I believe you." Teruya said. "Now, how does it continue?"
The rest of the class raises their hands and begins speaking. "We're students of Hope's Peak, right?"
"But you clearly already lived that life, right?" Monocrow asked.
Teruya remembered a certain photo with a grimace.
"I concur!" he shot in. He swallows the bit of stomach acid rising into his throat at the thought that this was the day where he'd be agreeing with Monocrow of all people.
"There was a photo of an adult Setsuka. Since we're avatars at the moment, we look exactly as we did before we entered the school," Teruya crossed his arms. "But in the real world, we've already lived out our school lives."
"Which means," Emma finally said something. "we've grown that much older. And among us, some aged so much we didn't recognize them." "The murders we were forced to commit were part of some silly game," Kanade's smirk turned into a grin. "Everyone who was killed should still be alive in the real world!"
"It's only logical."
"Logic."
"I concur." Teruya said. "Now, we need to determine the motive for this game's creation."
Everyone goes silent as they think of reasons.
"Money."
"Not that we would know anything about that." "As the creators of the Neo World Program, only the Kisaragi Foundation would know the truth." Monocrow said.
"Yeah, and even they wouldn't know that we all killed each other."
"Unless they put the blame on us."
"Who would do that?" "Some sicko." "What about the mastermind?" Emma asked. "What about the person who started this game? The one who made us kill each other, and had us killed in the first place?"
There was a pause as everyone thought of possible answers. "Let me reveal the mastermind!"
From there, Teruya told the story of the game's creation, Void and…
"Isn't that right? Kokoro Mitsume, you are the true mastermind!" Teruya pointed at the painter with a frown. "You killed all those people, and you had us kill each other in the first place!"
Chapter Text
"I'm afraid that's not what happened." Kokoro said. Then… full insanity broke out of her.
"Hooray, guys! I'm the mastermind. Thanks!" Kokoro said. "This life size painting…. How despairing it has been!" She laughed. "But, I think it's over now. I think I'm free!"
"What are you talking about?" Teruya asked. "Void and I were like caged birds," Kokoro said. "And even if you were the mastermind, Mr. Otori, we wouldn't be affected by your death. So you're just a nuisance."
"Kokoro, you're delirious!" Teruya said. "I have something else to say." Kokoro said. "There's an AI traitor who's working with the Kisaragi Foundation."
"An AI?" Monocrow asked.
"Artificial Intelligence," Kokoro said. "And I know who that traitor is. Miss Nanako, she had one half of the Teruya Otori AI. And Miss Kanata had the other half. And that AI… was you, Teruya." Kokoro said.
The traitor... is me...
My eyes twitched. I felt my lips curl upwards into an involuntary grin until my cheeks burned with pain.
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My mind was breaking, shattering before my eyes... How could I live with myself after this...?
This... was all my fault.
Teruya couldn't believe what he had just heard. The traitor was one of them.
"You… The traitor is me. The traitor is me."
The class was in shock. They stared at Teruya in disbelief. "You're the traitor, Mr. Teruya?" Emma asked.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Teruya. You were right," Kokoro said. "I am just a pawn in this game."
"No, you were right. We were pawns." Teruya said.
"Why do you think they had to give most of you avatars that looked like your younger selves? It's because your bodies are fucked up." Kokoro said. "The Voids' bodies are perfect!"
"You… You're just a puppet in the Foundation's hands."
"I'm just a pawn." Teruya said. He found himself in a dark void.
Nikei was there.
"Nikei?" Teruya asked.
"Don't give up, Otori." He said. "Be the last one standing."
"I'm going to get vengeance for all of this." Teruya said.
"I know."
"I'm going to end this game." Teruya said. He came out of the black void.
"Everyone, let's end this killing game!" He said.
Kokoro was confused. "What's the point of this?" She asked.
"Because, without this game, the world is fucked up. We can fix this." Teruya said.
"How?" Kokoro asked. He came out of the black void.
"Everyone, let's end this killing game!" He said.
Kokoro was confused. "How?" She asked.
"We'll find a way." Teruya said.
"How?" Kokoro asked.
"Let's play." Teruya said. "Despair prevails!" Kokoro laughed. "You can't defeat me! I'm basically a god! I hold the power of life and death over all of you! What makes you think you can stop me?! All of you peasants will bow to my will! I know better than anyone that despair anyways wins!"
I need to prove... once and for all... that despair loses! I need to prove that there's hope...!
"I am immortal! I am invincible! I am all-powerful! I am all-knowing!" Kokoro howled with laughter as you realized a final lie - the weakness that would prove Nikei right.
This is it! My final proof!
"You’ve got that wrong!" Teruya said. "I've heard your weakness. I've heard it in your thoughts. I've heard it in your hearts! I'm the one who will prove that despair has a weakness! And that weakness is me!" He said. "I'm the Ultimate Hope!"
Teruya Otori - Ultimate Hope
"Ultimate Hope?" Emma asked.
"The ultimate hope for this shitty world! I'm going to save all of you!"
Emma laughed. "You? Save us?" "An traitor has to repay their services somehow." Teruya pointed out.
Two buttons appeared.
A third button called Hope appeared.
The students' hands hover over this button.
You imagined each murder, and each Void. You then imagined each of the gruesome executions Kokoro had subjected your friends to, feeling a sense of vengeance, vindication and poetic justice.
"So, what'll it be? Graduate, or Repeat?" The painter asked. "What's it gonna be? ...What's it gonna beeee?"
For the first time, you stared into her eyes without fear... and smirked.
"...None of the above."
All four of you pressed the Hope button at the same time. "Too late, Teruya! It's punishment time!" Kokoro laughed. "Ready? Let's -"
Teruya pointed at the girl and replied with a smirk.
"No... it's YOUR PUNISHMENT TIME!" The red button appeared before Kokoro.
"Hope's won. I guess I'll just die then." The painter said, as she closed her eyes and pressed the button.
Game Over
Hope has won, and Kokoro will be punished on its behalf!
Kokoro sat in a chair. She stared at the camera blankly as props from the previous executions began gathering around her.
Kokoro’s Flohwalzer Bet On Conference
The scene changed. Kokoro was on a stage, singing a song, while buzzsaws whirled around her, slicing her body all over.
The scene changed. Kokoro played a piano on stage, and then the piano's electrodes turned on, torturously filling the painter with over 9,000 volts.
The scene changed. Kokoro was on a roulette wheel, being spun around and a ball nearly killed her.
The scene changed. The bloody Kokoro appeared in the conference hall, where the crowd of faceless basically destroyed her.
Despite the fact that she was on the verge of death, bleeding, bruised and even missing some limbs now, Kokoro reacted with varying levels of calm, happiness, and even boredom. The fact that she was still alive after sitting through all of that, willingly, was a miracle in itself. Or maybe even a curse…
It wasn't to last however.
The scene changed.
Kokoro was now nearby some gallows. A rope came down. With a disturbing level of calmness, she slipped her neck into the noose and prepared herself for the end.
Just then, though, a guillotine appeared.
Seeing this, Kokoro unwrapped the noose around her neck, ran over, and slid into the guillotine. With a disturbing grin, she pulled the rope, causing the blade to drop but not before her haunting laughter was forever embedded in your brain. Even when her head rolled on the ground, her face was locked in a permanent wide grin, her eyes still spinning.
In the courtroom, the Neo World Program was shutting down.
Kokoro Mitsume had finally been beaten at her own game.
"I KNEW WE COULD DO IT!" Shinji smiled, tears of relief forming in his eyes.
"Yes... and all because we believe in each other," Kanade sighed, a warm smile finally gracing her lips.
"I knew you guys could do it," You beamed. As you took Emma’s hand.
You couldn’t stop thinking about it. About how Yuki had been grated like cheese, how Nikei and Hajime’s relief was turned to despair, how Setsuka had been dissected, how Syobai had been crushed, how Iroha committed suicide, and how Mikado, Hibiki, Sora, Yuri, and Yoruko had been turned into lifeless corpses.
Emma clasped your hand tighter.
"I knew you'd do it!" Nikei whispered from that black void.
You held onto Kanade, Shinji and Emma’s hands.
Sixteen of you when this started.
And now four of you stood there, as the Neo World Program shut down.
How poetic.
Chapter 6: This is the End; Goodbye Academy of Despair
END
Surviving Students: 4
The Number of Void
Hajime Makunouchi, Kokoro Mitsume, Yuki Maeda, Nikei Yomiuri, Syobai Hashimoto
Voids remaining: 0
Received Present!
Despair Sketchbook
